Easter Eggs
Hamlet Ophelia's name is a reference to a character of the same name in shakespeare's Hamlet. The two even share a simillar fate. It's also possible that the faction name Tainted Coil is a reference to Prince Hamlet's famous 'to be or not to be speech', in which he refers to dying as 'shuffling off this mortal coil', the coil being the burden of life. Thus, the Tainted Coil would be an evil, corrupted existence. 'Dad Bat' The father of the bat family near the wraith tree was voiced by Ozzy Osbourne. His portrayal as a bat is a reference to the time he famously bit the head off a bat during a live show (not realising that it was a real one until Sharon told him). The other bats are based on his family, referencing his success on "The Osbournes". While the Dad Bat also bears a likeness to the character Beetlejuice, the giant head on the bat bears a more striking resemblance to Ozzy's appearance on the cover art from his "Bark at the Moon" album and the video for "Bark At The Moon". The bat also threatens to "Bite your head off." 'One Shot at Glory' The Guitar Solo (which is on Lars Halford's sword of the same name) refers to lyrics from the Judas Priest song "One Shot at Glory". The lyrics referred to are "Let me hear the Battle Cry" and "I still hear the Battle Cry", and the song is played during the first battle against General Lionwhyte's forces (voiced by Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford). 'Betrayal' This song makes a number of references to the Drowning Doom Faction, such as the "Sea of Black Tears" and also makes references to betrayal, which the darker form of Ophelia has been feeling since Eddie Riggs left her for dead. The lyrics even say "This brutal legend, the brutal pain," which is such a fit to the story. Led Zeppelin The Bring it on Home guitar solo is a tribute to Led Zeppelin, one of the earliest influences in heavy metal music. The name of the solo comes from one of the tracks on Led Zeppelin II, a cover version of the song made famous by Sonny Boy Williamson. The flaming zeppelin that falls out of the sky is both a reference to the band's name and the cover of their self-titled debut album. Ace of Spades One of the paint jobs available in the Motor Forge is called "Ace of Hades," which is taglined “Let them know you don’t wanna live forever” — a reference to Motörhead’s song "Ace of Spades." When you highlight this paint job on the menu, The Guardian of Metal says: "Oh I hate puns!" Anthrax When Eddie is on top of the Deuce Deathrack he says "Death From Above, by car!" which is a reference to the song by Anthrax Death From Above the Achievement Death From Above also makes the same reference Holy Diver Inside the Motor Forge there is a giant demon in the backround behind some cave columns and stalagtites which bears similar resembleance to the demon that appears on the Dio album Holy Diver, Ronnie James Dio was also to be the original voice of Emperor Doviculus Ride the Lightning One of the Primary Weapons available in the Motor Forge is called the Bolt Thrower, referencing the death metal band of the same name. When you highlight this item on the menu, The Guardian of Metal says "Why don't you make someone else ride your lightning for a change?", which is a reference to Metallica's second album, "Ride the Lightning" that contains a song of the same name. Candlemass The Drowning Doom's merch booth is called the Well Of Souls, a reference to the Candlemass song of the same name. Slayer On page 7 of the game's player manual, under the Fans section, the following sentence appears (which can also be seen on the Fan Geyser article): "Every metalhead that spews forth is now your devotee, giving you the resources to fill out your war ensemble." This is a reference to the Slayer song "War Ensemble." Also the song "Metal Storm/ The Face of Slayer" is one of the many songs in the Mouth of Metal. Danzig Eddie Riggs has a very similar appearance to Glenn Danzig, lead singer of the bands Danzig and The Misfits, this similarity is also pointed out by Toki Wartooth on the Metalocalypse Brutal Legend debut and Dethklok tour promo. Nathan Explosion: I think we should fire that new guy Eddie. I don't think he's metal enough. Toki Wartooth: But hes cuts the crusts off my sandwiches and he looks like Danzigs. Nathan Explosion: Yeah but young Danzig when he was actually something. Grim Fandango One of the paint jobs available in the Motor Forge is called "Wagon of Bones," a reference to the Bone Wagon from Grim Fandango. Furthermore, its description states "No one will think it’s a company car," in reference to the fact that the Bone Wagon was a company car turned hot rod. When you highlight this paint job on the menu, The Guardian Of Metal simply says "That's grim." in reference to Grim Fandango as a whole. Similarly, the character Fletus is a demon with an obsession for fast cars, much like spiritual predecessor Glottis from Grim Fandango. Paranoid When you purchase the "A Touch Too Much Armor" Deuce Upgrade, the Guardian of Metal says "Wow! Someone's a little paranoid." This is a reference to Black Sabbath's second album, "Paranoid," which contains a song of the same name. AC/DC This Deuce Upgrade is a reference to the AC/DC song "Touch Too Much." Also, the axe treatment "Razor's Edge" is a reference to the song of the same name, from the album of the same name, and the Guitar Strings "High Voltage" is a reference to there Album cover "High Voltage" No Sleep 'till Battersmith When the headbangers are getting on the bus to Battersmith, Lars yells out "No Sleep 'till Battersmith!", a reference to the legendary Motörhead live album, "No Sleep 'till Hammersmith" Bat out of Hell When executing the final jump in the early mission in which you leave the Temple of Ormagöden, during the cutscene, you see Eddie and Opehlia leaning way back in their seats with their eyes closed during the jump (seen here and here), which is a reference to Meat Loaf's Bat out of Hell album cover. :Bonus trivia: Judas Priest's Painkiller album cover was also inspired by the Bat out of Hell cover. Blackout The appearance of the Landmark Viewers, specifically the forks over the skull's "eyes," is a reference to the Blackout album cover by the Scorpions, which is a self portrait by the artist Gottfried Helnwein. Additionally, it may be a reference to the band Rammstein and the cover of the Sehnsucht album, in which the band members have their faces being contorted by machinery/pieces of metal; one of the members has forks over his eyes. This album cover was photographed by Gottfried Helnwein. The Tainted Coil's Warfather units also have forks over their eyes. Return of Razputin During the opening cinematic, one of the Kabbage Boy band members is dancing on Eddie Riggs’s stage and nearly falls to his death. The dance and noise the character makes is the same dance (at 0:40) performed by both Razputin and Bobby in Double Fine’s previous game, Psychonauts. Richard Horvitz voiced both Razputin and the band member as well as the Death Rack Headbanger who wears Raz's goggles. There is also a Razputin head you can put on Mount Rockmore, and an achievement/trophy that you can earn if you put four of them on there. The achievement/trophy is called, "Whispering Rock", which was the name of the summer camp in Psychonauts. Razputin's Goggles The goggles that Jack (the Death Rack operator) wears origionally belonged to Razputin in the before mentioned Psychonauts. This pair however has been updated for HD. Motörhead’s Snaggletooth Earlier pictures of Eddie’s belt buckle look very much like classic metal band Motörhead’s official logo, ‘Snaggletooth’. However, the version conspicuously featured in the first Brutal Legend theatrical trailer looks a little more distinctive. There are also stone structures of Snaggletooth along the path to the Kill Master. Kyle Gass The Cannoneer appears in the cannoneer secondary missions, he has the body of a Bouncer and the head of Kyle Gass, Jack Black's bandmate in Tenacious D. His name sake comes from Kyle's nick-name, Kage. White Lion Himself being based on glam metal, General Lionwhyte’s namesake is glam metal band White Lion. The character has long, luscious, and fabulous hair that he can use to fly, which may be a reference to Judas Priest member Rob Halford — the character’s voice actor — who is bald. Lemmy Kilmister A prominent character in Brutal Legend is the Kill Master, whose name is based on the character’s voice actor: Lemmy Kilmister, founder of Motörhead. Real life people references A brother and sister named Lars and Lita Halford join Eddie on his journey. Their last name is a reference to Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford (who voiced Lionwhyte and The Baron). Lars’s name is a reference to Metallica co-founder Lars Ulrich, while Lita's appearance and first name is based on The Runaways lead guitarist turned solo artist Lita Ford (who voiced Rima). Eddie Riggs, the star of Brütal Legend, got his name from two sources: "Eddie the Head", the official mascot of Iron Maiden, and Derek Riggs, the artist who created the mascot. Hidden Dialogue When first meeting Ophelia, if you attempt to activate the Relic while there are still enemies to kill in the shrine, Ophelia and Eddie argue: Eddie: Woah. Come and look at this cool stuff! Ophelia: Are you going you help me fight or not? (Fighting enemies) Eddie: Oh yeah... right. I'll be right there. You should totally come check this out after. If you look at the shrine when ophelia is over by the door Eddie:'''Hey look! '''Ophelia: '''Over here you F! '''Eddie: '''Oh, right Also, when you are driving off the collapsing bridge from the Feeding Area, if you drive off the bridge, you will hear this '''Eddie: By the way my name is Eddiiiiiiiiieeeeeee. Ophelia: I wish I never met youuuuuuuuuuuuu. (reference to Rocky Horror Picture Show) Heavy Metal (Song) The "Eternal Fire Beast Ormagöden" may have been derived from the Judas Priest song "Heavy Metal", specifically from the lyrics "An armor plated raging beast that's born of steel and leather". The Headbangers may have been derived from this song as well, specifically from the lyrics "all heads are banging". Does it Hurt? The demon that Eddie strangles in the debut trailer makes a not-so-noticeable appearance in the game. He seems to be the creature being tortured on the Screamwagon. His voice is different, as well, being changed from the deep, narrator like voice of the Warfathers to a whiny, higher pitched voice. And not just any whiny, high pitched voice. Why its the king of annoying high pitched voices, David Cross! A Nightmare Before Christmas In the battle at Dry Ice, Wet Graves''one can overhear Ophelia saying "You got a problem? Talk to Jack." a reference to Jack Skellington from Tim Burton's classic film, ''The Nightmare Before Christmas. Additionally, it may be a reference to Eddie's Voice Actor, Jack Black. KISS Once Eddie has reached the Jungle area of the world, he begins to try to tame the Metal Beast, only to be greeted by Rima, Queen of the Zaulia. Their gear and the Metal Beasts are all references to the band KISS and the appearance of the Zaulia is alike the women in the music video "Rock You Like a Hurricane" by the Scorpions. Their war paint is a combination of the face paint worn by KISS and the face paint worn by black metal vocalist King Diamond. Also, on the top of the Zaulia temple, you can see a drum set which is a Peter Criss Tribute for they also wear his face paint. Eddie can also wear the face paint of Tommy Thayer (and technically Ace Frehley) other wise reffered to as the "Space Man" by down loading the Hammer of Infinite Fate Expansion Pack. The Destroyers One of the guitar string upgrades in the Motor Forge is called the "Destroyers", which is a reference to the KISS album Destroyer. They are also labeled the "best strings for combat". Black Tear On one of Tenacious D's tours they were in New Zealand. They met two kids that were street musicians, and the D had those two kids open for their concert that night. The kids' band was named Black Tear. Keep Us On The Road When selecting primary weapons for The Deuce while in the Motor Forge, The Guardian of Metal will say "Something to keep your company on the road?" This is a reference to Motorhead's song "Keep Us On The Road". Ironheade Ironhead is the name of a song done in conjunction between Rob Zombie and Ozzy Osbourne. The E at the end is explained by Eddy Riggs when he says "With an E at the end so people know we're not messin around”. Iron Maiden The mission named "A Number of the Beasts", along with the achievement "Ran to the Hills" are references of the titles of two Iron Maiden songs: "The Number of the Beast" and "Run to the Hills". Also the achievement "Flowerslave", gotten after summoning all Motor Forges, is a reference of the song "Powerslave" by Iron Maiden. The main characters name is also a tribute to Iron Maiden, as the mascot of the group is named Eddie, or Eddie the Head, and the artist that draws him is named Derek Riggs. The Bleeding Death is summoned from the sky in an actual Iron Maiden. Black Sabbath The achievement "Practice Bloody Practice", gotten for winning an AI stage battle on any difficulty, is a reference to Black Sabbath's studio album "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" Dec 8th Loading Dime On December 8th, the Ormagöden loading icon is replaced by a Dime icon. This is likely a tribute to heavy metal guitarist Dimebag Darrell, who was shot and killed during an onstage performance on December 8th, 2004. The Crow The falling crow on Ophelia's sword (later becomes the coat of arms for the Drowning Doom) is a reference to the movie "The Crow", most specifically the character Eric Draven that becomes "The Crow" after dying because of a unjust attack on his home. Both Eric and Ophelia created a alter ego (Eric became the Crow, Ophelia created Drowned Ophelia), both have a distinct crow symbol on their person, and both willingly serve what would seem to be Darkness itself for what they perceive to be the greater good (Drowned Ophelia wants revenge on Eddie, while Eric wants to slay the mob boss that killed him). This theory becomes more possible as The Crow at a few points plays his guitar on the rooftops to all that will listen and quite often a more gothic tone then he played in life. Wayne's World When the player tries to access the Motor Forge section with "Locked" on it, The Guardian of Metal says "You're not worthy...yet". Wayne and Garth in both Wayne's World movies chant "We're not worthy!" repeatedly while bowing on their knees many times when in the presence of a rock legend. Metallica When Eddie sends his men to attack, he may say "Kill em' all!" which is refering to Metallica's debut album. Also, in the Metal Forg, theres a selection in the primary weapons called the Lightning Rods. When Selected, Ozzy will proclaim "Why dont you let someone else Ride YOUR Lightning for a change?" basically reffering to Metallica's album and song "Ride the Lightning". Megadeth Sometimes when ordering his men to attack, Eddie may say "Take no prisoners!" which is a reference to the song of the same name by the band Megadeth. Twisted Sister The Headbanger unit will often say upon seeing the Emperor "We're not going to take it anymore!" , a direct line from the song "We're Not Gonna Take It". This is ironic because Twisted Sister is a Hair Metal Band and by the time the Headbangers fight the Tainted Coil they have killed Lionwhyte. Blue Oyster Cult When a Metal Beast destroys the enemy stage, the Zaulia riding it may say "History shows again and again how nature points up the folly of man." This is a very obvious reference to the Blue Oyster Cult song "Godzilla." Also, the Drowning Doom's Reapers may be a reference to Blue Oyster Cult's song "Don't Fear the Reaper." The Reapers may also be a homage to the band "Grim Reaper". Corpse Bride The bride unit is a reference to another of Tim Burton's movies - "Corpse Bride" Fright Wig The Fright Wig, a monster that takes the shape of a woman's head and hair may be a reference to the band Fright Wig. Call of the Wild When Eddie plays his Call of the Wild solo, he will ocassionally say "Call of the Wild was my favorite book!" This is a reference to the book of the same name by Jack London. Airbourne When Eddie stuns, rides and dismounts a beast, he will occasionally say "Run wild, wild and free!" This is a possible reference to the Hard Rock band Airbourne most well-known song, "Runnin' Wild." Coincidentally, the video for the song features Lemmy Killmeister, who voices the Killmaster. Bride of Frankenstein When her veil is off (as seen in her concept art), the Bride's hair has white streaks running down it, possibly referencing the titular character of the movie. Category:Content Pyromania